May 9, 2010
Final Stats
ATHENS, Ohio-An Ohio baseball player homered three times for the second-straight game as the host Bobcats defeated Buffalo 12-5 Sunday afternoon at Bob Wren Stadium to complete a three-game sweep of the Bulls.
Ohio improved to 17-30 overall and 10-11 in the Mid-American Conference, while Buffalo dropped to 20-26 and 6-15 in the league.
Ohio left fielder Robert Maddox III belted three homers, scored three times and had seven RBIs. Center fielder Gauntlett Eldemire, who had seven homers this week, went 2-for-2 with a team-best four runs scored. In all, the Bobcats had two doubles and six homers during the contest.
Buffalo saw every starter record at least one hit and was paced by three hits from left fielder Bobby Pizzuto and third baseman Alex Baldock. Pizzuto and designated hitter Brad Cochrane also had two RBIs, while second baseman Brad Augustin had a team-high three runs scored.
Ohio reliever Bryce Butt (4-7) got the win, pitching the game’s last four and two-thirds innings, allowing one run on seven hits with four strikeouts and one walk.
Buffalo starter Josh Edwards (0-5) took the loss after giving up five runs on six hits with three strikeouts and one walk in four innings of work.
The Bulls got two runs in the third to start the scoring, but Ohio responded with five in the fourth. Maddox scored the first three when his shot to right center cleared the wall in right center. Catcher Kris McDonough then plated the last two with a two-run homer to center.
The two teams traded two runs in the fifth, with Ohio’s tallies coming on back-to-back homers to left and center field by Eldemire and Maddox, respectively.
Bobcat right fielder Adam Gecewich got in on the action with a solo homer to left in the sixth inning, while Maddox and designated hitter Tyler Backstrom had run-scoring doubles to left center and down the right field line, respectively, in the seventh.
The Bulls got one more run in the top of the eighth, but Ohio answered with two tallies in the bottom half on another two-run dinger to right center by Maddox.
For the week, in addition to his seven homers, Eldemire had 36 total bases and slugged 1.800 with an on-base percentage of .769. Maddox drove in 12 runs, had five homers and slugged 1.167. As a team, the Bobcats went 4-1, hit .372 and had 16 homers.
The program honored seniors Butt, McDonough, right fielder Jerod Yakubik and pitcher Rex Ingham in addition to its draft-eligible student-athletes Eldemire and Maddox in a pregame ceremony.
Ohio will hit the road for a 6 p.m. contest at Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
